A walipini is an earth-sheltered

cold frame In agriculture and gardening, a cold frame is a transparent-roofed enclosure, built low to the ground, used to protect plants from adverse weather, primarily excessive cold or wet. The transparent top admits sunlight and prevents heat escape via ...

. It derives its name from the

Aymaran languages Aymaran (also Jaqi or Aru) is one of the two dominant language families in the central Andes alongside Quechuan. The family consists of Aymara, widely spoken in Bolivia, and the endangered Jaqaru and Kawki languages of Peru. Hardman (1978) p ...

. It is similar in concept to the

pineapple pit A pineapple pit is a method of growing pineapples in colder climates. One of the earliest examples in Britain has been found by archaeologists at Heligan in Cornwall.The Lost Gardens of Heligan Handbook, 2002 Updated 2007, copyright Heligan Garde ...

that was used, as the name implies, to cultivate pineapple and other exotic fruits in

Victorian era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the reign of Queen Victoria, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. Slightly different definitions are sometimes used. The era followed the ...

Britain Britain most often refers to: * Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales * The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...

and in the cold plains of pre-revolution

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

. In the

Soviet era The history of the Soviet Union (USSR) (1922–91) began with the ideals of the Russian Bolshevik Revolution and ended in dissolution amidst economic collapse and political disintegration. Established in 1922 following the Russian Civil War, ...

, similar techniques were developed to grow citrus fruits (oranges, lemons, mandarins, tangerines, grapefruits, limes, pomelos) at temperatures of minus 30 degrees Celsius. By 1950, the Soviet Union boasted 30,000 hectares of citrus plantations producing 200,000 tonnes of fruits per year. The walipini is attractive to practitioners of

permaculture Permaculture is an approach to land management and settlement design that adopts arrangements observed in flourishing natural ecosystems. It includes a set of design principles derived using Systems theory, whole-systems thinking. It applies t ...

and the

sustainability Sustainability is a social goal for people to co-exist on Earth over a long period of time. Definitions of this term are disputed and have varied with literature, context, and time. Sustainability usually has three dimensions (or pillars): env ...

movement because it allows for crops to be grown in greenhouse-like settings whilst requiring little to no heating.

References

Architectural terminology Greenhouses {{Horticulture-stub